At least five workers were killed, and another 10 people suffered serious injuries after a boiler exploded at a private pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in the special economic zone of Sri City in Satyavedu mandal of Andhra Pradesh ’s Tirupati district in the wee hours of Saturday, officials familiar with the development said.
Andhra Pradesh minister for education and information technology, Nara Lokesh , confirmed the accident and expressed shock and grief over the death of workers. Following the blast, police, emergency personnel and other officials rushed to the facility and launched rescue and relief operations. Authorities have not yet released the identities of all the deceased or provided a detailed account of how the accident occurred. The final casualty figures are also expected to be confirmed after the rescue operations and medical assessment of the injured are completed.
The accident occurred at the Till Healthcare pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, which produces tablets. Efforts were also made to secure the premises and to assist workers who were trapped or affected by the fire.
The boiler suddenly exploded while workers were on the night shift, triggering a massive fire inside the industrial unit and causing panic in the industrial area, according to preliminary reports. “The deaths caused by the boiler explosion and the injuries suffered by several workers are deeply tragic,” he said in a post on X. “Officials are expected to investigate whether the accident resulted from a technical malfunction, a failure of safety systems, an operational lapse or any other factor,” he said.
